St Eloi

Pilgrim badge from the shrine of St Eloi at Noyon, France. This badge shows St Eloi on the left, hammering on an anvil. There is a hole in the centre of the badge suggesting that it may have been nailed up, perhaps at the home of its owner. On the right is a pilgrim, standing with his horse by his side, giving St Eloi a trindle (a coiled candle). In medieval times, people were sometimes 'measured for a candle', which meant that a piece of string that was as long as they were tall was turned into a trindle and offered to a saint in return for a favour. Documentary evidence suggests candles were on sale at St Eloi's shrine in Noyon and that the candle sellers were also selling pilgrim badges (which may explain why the badges are often so crude in design).

St Eloi or Eligius was a French saint, born around 588. He became Bishop of Noyon and Tournai, and converted many people to Christianity. He was also said to have been a highly skilled farrier who, if a horse was too frisky to be easily shoed, could remove its leg, shoe it, and put the leg back on. He became one of the most popular French saints and was known as ‘Loy’ in medieval England. He was the patron saint of smiths, farriers, metalworkers and a healer of sick animals.